Craig Goldthorp

CRABTREE Park in Douglas was the venue for another successful crowning ceremony at the village’s annual gala day.

The smiles on the faces of Douglas Gala Queen Nadine Lowe, her Champion Martyn Hannigan and the rest of the gala court were indicative of a joyous occasion which also featured an impressive procession of floats.

“Queen Nadine, her gala court and crowning lady Jane Bairner all did really well and looked like they were enjoying themselves,” said Douglas Gala chairperson Adele Smith.

“The weather was fine and sunny other than a light shower during the crowning.

“The procession entry was good and included the Gnomes entry which had appeared at Lanimer Day. I don’t think we’d ever managed to get a Lanimer float at Douglas Gala before.”

As a guest float, the Gnomes entry couldn’t be considered for the title of overall winner, which was landed by the I Need a Hero entry by a group of local mums. This float featured folk dressed as superheroes like Superman or characters from The Avengers.

“The winning float was colourful and had great detail,” Adele said. “You could tell that a lot of work had gone into it.”

The event was attended by hundreds of spectators and the fun didn’t stop with the end of the procession. entertainment in the park including Kirsty’s Critters stall with snakes, lizards, tortoises and birds of prey.

There was also a bouncy slide, bubble soccer, youth tattoos, face painting and hair braiding.

“It was funny watching folk standing in large bubbles trying to play football,” Adele said. “They kept knocking into each other.”

Freelance photographer Sarah Peters was on hand to capture the action and her pictures are featured in our slideshow, created by Johnston Press Scotland communities hub deputy editor Julie Currie. Enjoy – and remember pictures can be ordered on this website!